Sebastian Hotz, a German comedian also known as El Hotzo, is set to appear in court on July 23 at Berlin's Tiergarten district court, facing charges of condoning and rewarding criminal offenses, The Telegraph reports.

The charges stem from a joke he made last year regarding the attempted assassination of US President Donald Trump, then a leading presidential candidate.

Shortly after the July 13, 2024, shooting, Hotz wrote, "You sadly just missed it," comparing the incident to trying to catch the last bus. He later intensified his remarks, stating, "I find it fantastic when fascists die. Absolutely no one forces you to feel sorry for fascists - you can just not do it without the slightest consequence."

Hotz's comments led to his dismissal from RBB, a public broadcaster, and ignited a heated debate among critics from both the left and the right concerning the boundaries of free speech.

The incident drew the attention of Tesla owner Elon Musk, who publicly criticized the German government. Musk tweeted at Olaf Scholz, the then-German chancellor, questioning, "Someone wishing death on the leading US presidential candidate and myself is paid to do so by the German government." He then directly addressed Scholz on X, asking, "Was ist das? [What is that?]"

This is not the first time a comedian in Germany has faced legal repercussions over controversial remarks.

In 2016, TV host Jan Böhmermann was charged under an obscure German law for insulting authority figures after reciting a satirical poem about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The poem contained graphic and insulting descriptions.

Angela Merkel, the then-German chancellor, personally approved Böhmermann's prosecution following discussions with Turkish officials. Böhmermann, in turn, accused Merkel of "serving me to a neurotic despot for tea and made me become a German Ai Weiwei." The case against Böhmermann was eventually dropped, and the lese-majesty law was subsequently abolished.